APSIL -Chapter 8 Disdain

That day, because of the arrival of Zhu Ying, the noble young lady, the little Zhang household was thrown into complete chaos.

Old Liu and A-Liu hurried off to the village cooper to buy brand-new wooden basins, tubs, and every other utensil the young lady might need to make do for the time being.

Madam Wu and Aunt Liu busied themselves preparing the main bedroom that Zhang Shou had occupied alone. After all, there was quite a difference between a man’s room and a woman’s.

As for Zhang Shou…

The moment Zhu Ying looked away, he had vanished.

Though somewhat annoyed, she could only console herself. There would be plenty of time ahead. Since she had already decided to stay, surely she would have countless opportunities to observe Zhang Shou up close.

To Miss Zhu, however, everything in the Zhang household felt shabby, yet refreshingly new.

It wasn’t as though she had never stayed away from home before, but those had always been family villas, attended by countless maids and servants who catered to her every whim. Everything—from furnishings to meals—had been chosen with painstaking care. Even the so-called rustic charm had been painstakingly manufactured with lavish expense solely to amuse her.

Nothing had ever resembled this, where everything had to be hastily purchased and hurriedly prepared.

Seeing everyone busy, and remembering that Zhang Shou seemed convinced she was helpless without maids, Zhu Ying rolled up her sleeves and volunteered to help tidy the main room.

Unfortunately, after she accidentally overturned a washbasin and nearly drenched herself, Madam Wu simply couldn’t bear to watch anymore.

She escorted the extravagantly dressed young lady straight into the study partitioned off from the eastern room of the main house.

A cup of hot tea was promptly served, and the young lady was politely invited to “have a good rest.”

Zhu Ying secretly thanked heaven that Zhang Shou wasn’t around.

If he had witnessed how clumsy she’d been after all her bold boasts, she would have had no idea where to hide her face.

Taking a sip of the rather bland tea, her gaze suddenly landed on the towering bookcase lining the wall, and her eyes immediately lit up.

She randomly picked out several books and flipped through them, only to find nothing but the Four Books and Five Classics. There wasn’t even a single romance novel or storybook of the sort noble young ladies secretly passed around among themselves.

She quickly lost interest.

Just then, she casually pulled out another thin volume.

Opening it, she discovered it was a calligraphy practice notebook.

The handwriting inside was barely neat enough to pass, but it was weak and lifeless, utterly lacking character or spirit.

Her brows knitted tightly.

Even my own calligraphy—which I’ve never practiced diligently—is better than this!

“Growing up among such country folk… how could he possibly avoid becoming ordinary?”

Zhu Gongquan’s earlier words, spoken while pointing at the back of Zhang Shou’s head, echoed once more in her ears.

It felt as though someone had suddenly dumped a bucket of cold water over her.

Only then did she remember.

Zhang Shou had grown up in the countryside.

There was no way he could have studied under a famous master.

Feeling inexplicably upset, she tossed the practice book aside, then guiltily returned it to its original place before pulling out another volume.

To her disappointment, it contained the same stiff, elementary handwriting.

Glancing over the shelf, she realized there were over a dozen similarly bound copybooks.

Her mood grew even more complicated.

For generations, every emperor had cherished calligraphy.

Even her father, despite being a military general, possessed vigorous, elegant handwriting. Her grandmother had forced her to practice until her own writing was respectable.

If Zhang Shou couldn’t even write well, how could he ever enter official service?

A youth so handsome and refined that even the finest sons of noble families in the capital paled beside him…

He ought to be achieving first place in all three imperial examinations, riding triumphantly through the streets, becoming both renowned general and distinguished minister…

He should stand at the highest ranks of court, making ordinary men feel ashamed of themselves.

How could someone like him possess such dreadful handwriting?

What a waste…

It seems I made the right decision by staying.

But why didn’t Father hire him a proper teacher?

Stepping back into the outer room and seeing Madam Wu and Aunt Liu still hard at work, the thoughtful young lady quietly slipped outside.

Finding no one in either of the side rooms of the inner courtyard, she wandered into the front courtyard instead.

The front gate stood slightly ajar.

Everything was silent except for faint noises coming from the kitchen.

Knowing the two male servants had gone shopping, she almost thought a thief had broken in.

Lifting the cloth curtain at the kitchen entrance…

She froze.

The busy figure inside was Zhang Shou.

Unable to stop herself, she blurted out, “Why are you cooking?”

Having already heard someone approach, Zhang Shou answered without looking back.

“You’re about to say, ‘A gentleman stays away from the kitchen,’ aren’t you? Sorry, but as you saw during lunch, I don’t subscribe to that idea.”

“If someone truly can’t bear the thought of killing living creatures, then they should become a vegetarian. Eating beef, lamb, fish, and shrimp while sighing over the cruelty of slaughter—that’s the behavior of a hypocrite. Better to be an honest rogue.”

After a pause, he continued leisurely, “You, a noble young lady, suddenly staying in this countryside where there’s nothing worth mentioning—not even decent tea to drink. If I also fail to feed you properly, then when your family comes tomorrow, won’t they think we’ve neglected our guest?”

Zhang Shou firmly believed that food should be prepared with the greatest possible care.

When he’d first transmigrated, Aunt Liu’s cooking—which Madam Wu had considered fairly good—had struck him as unbearably monotonous.

Fortunately, in his previous life he had been a solitary gourmet.

Otherwise, the repetitive country meals would probably have given him stomach problems.

To solve that issue, he’d even compiled his own cookbook, claiming an elderly scholar had once gifted it to him.

This evening he wasn’t especially trying to impress the young lady.

A familiar village boy had simply delivered half a basket of wild vegetables.

If he didn’t cook them now, they’d soon become too old to eat.

Remembering lunch, Zhu Ying now understood.

The reason Zhang Shou could seemingly whip up delicious food so effortlessly was because he cooked regularly.

But the more she realized this, the worse she felt.

A graceful young man whose mere presence at court would become a spectacle…

How could someone like him waste his talents on cooking?

After hesitating for a while, she quietly crept closer, hoping to see what he was making.

Without turning around, Zhang Shou spoke again.

“The kitchen is full of sharp knives, scalding steam, and fragile dishes that are troublesome to clean up if broken. Your Ladyship should go back and rest.”

Having already been politely dismissed once in the main room, hearing that same dismissive tone again made the young lady puff up with indignation.

“Can your cooking really compare to that of the capital’s famous chefs?”

“Heh.”

Zhang Shou chuckled.

“How much does a banquet prepared by a famous chef in the capital cost? How much is a country meal worth? They’re worlds apart—hardly comparable.”

“But simple home cooking never grows tiresome.”

“As for famous chefs… some truly possess remarkable skill, while others merely enjoy an inflated reputation.”

“There are very few celebrated restaurants where people could happily eat every meal for ten straight days.”

Zhu Ying found herself speechless.

There was indeed one renowned restaurant in the capital that she’d grown tired of after only two meals.

She opened her mouth.

She desperately wanted to ask about his terrible handwriting.

She hoped he’d tell her it wasn’t his—that it belonged to Madam Wu or someone else.

But the words reached her lips only to be swallowed again.

His background is already mysterious enough.

Why should I accidentally touch a painful subject?

Besides… handwriting can always be improved.

When I return to the capital, I’ll persuade Grandmother to invite one of those elderly Hanlin scholars to teach Zhang Shou proper calligraphy.

Yes.

Absolutely mustn’t let him know I secretly looked through his copybooks.

Completely unaware of the twists and turns inside the young lady’s mind, Zhang Shou finally managed to coax her out of the kitchen.

Though she remained full of doubts, Zhu Ying eagerly anticipated dinner.

At lunchtime, she’d enjoyed both delicious food and the feast for her eyes that was Zhang Shou.

Surely, with everyone dining together this evening, she’d be able to admire him openly.

Yet when dinnertime arrived and she waited in the main room, only Madam Wu entered carrying a tray.

Smiling, Madam Wu placed a plum-blossom-shaped divided serving box and two covered bowls on the table.

Zhu Ying blinked in surprise.

When the lid of the serving box was lifted, her confusion deepened.

It wasn’t because some dishes were familiar while others were entirely new.

Rather…

Although the variety was abundant and beautifully presented…

It was clearly only enough food for one person.

“This is chilled amaranth salad, stir-fried plantain greens, lotus-leaf steamed rabbit, sweet fermented-rice steamed fish, soup-filled steamed dumplings, and wild vegetable omelets.”

“In these two bowls are tofu and fish mousse soup, and steamed rice with shiitake mushrooms and diced ham.”

After personally delivering the meal, Madam Wu smiled apologetically before continuing, “A-Shou said that since it’s your first time staying in the countryside, Young Miss Ying, you’d probably feel uncomfortable eating with strangers.”

“So he thought it would be better if everyone dined separately.”

After Madam Wu departed with a smile, leaving her alone in the spacious main room with the delicate but modestly portioned meal spread across the square table…

Miss Zhu slammed her chopsticks onto the table with a loud crack.

She ground her teeth in frustration.

When we were in the kitchen, he said such considerate things…

And now suddenly we’re eating separately?

When did I ever say I couldn’t eat at the same table with strangers?

Didn’t I eat lunch with you just fine?

Zhang Shou!

I didn’t even look down on your terrible handwriting…

And you actually dare look down on me?!